Coinbase Wins CFTC Clearinghouse, Stock Perps Still Pending

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission registered Coinbase Clearing LLC as a derivatives clearing organization on Sept. 28, authorizing the unit to clear fully collateralized futures, options on futures and swaps. With that authorization, Coinbase operates across the three main U.S. derivatives layers: Coinbase Financial Markets as a futures commission merchant, Coinbase Derivatives as a designated contract market, and Coinbase Clearing as a registered clearinghouse.

The registration allows Coinbase Clearing to create and settle fully collateralized contracts and to accept specified collateral types, including USDC, for those contracts. Coinbase described the clearinghouse as capable of continuous settlement to support products intended for always-on trading and said the in-house capacity could shorten product development cycles and reduce reliance on external partners for eligible contracts.

Coinbase filed a separate proposal on Sept. 18 for cash-settled single-stock perpetual futures tied to individual U.S. equities and exchange-traded funds, using an Apple-linked contract as the representative example. The CFTC product record showed the filing status as “Approval Pending” on Sept. 30.

The proposed single-stock perpetual contracts have no fixed expiration and use periodic funding payments to keep prices aligned with the underlying shares. The filing names Nodal Clear LLC as the central counterparty for those contracts rather than Coinbase Clearing. The proposed trading window for the Apple-linked perpetual runs from 8 p.m. Eastern on Sunday through 5 p.m. Eastern on Friday.

Coinbase told regulators it will continue to rely on existing partners for portions of its margined derivatives business and for the planned single-stock perpetuals while the CFTC reviews the filing. Margined products allow participants to borrow or use leverage and require ongoing margin calculations, while fully collateralized contracts are backed by posted assets intended to cover potential exposure.

A derivatives clearinghouse serves as the central counterparty between buyers and sellers, matching trades, collecting margin and ensuring settlement if one side fails to meet obligations. Registering as a clearing organization with the CFTC is required to offer clearing services for futures and swaps in the U.S. and brings those services under ongoing regulatory oversight.

The next regulatory milestone for Coinbase’s derivatives expansion is the CFTC decision on the single-stock perpetual filing. If the agency approves the contracts, Coinbase would be able to list them as proposed, initially using an external clearinghouse unless it secures further approvals to move such products onto Coinbase Clearing.